SR5 2014

Alec Dodge

Description:

Bio:

Dodge was born in 2029 in Boston to parents who were both mid-level Ares employees. He grew up with the world in flux, but his position inside one of the world’s largest corporations shielded him from much of the social and political turbulence of the mid 21st century. Intelligent and charismatic, Dodge received a high quality education in Ares’ corporate school system as they groomed him for a position as a loyal and dedicated employee. By 2050, Dodge had become an investigator for Securitex, Ares’ insurance arm.

Dodge was charged with tracking down lost or stolen art, magical artifacts, tech, and intellectual property so that Securitex could avoid making payouts on insured goods. Through his work, he gained an intimate understanding of the value of such goods, the black market channels through which they moved, the various cons and schemes that crooks would use to acquire them, as well as every form of insurance fraud ever conceived. His investigations also brought him into contact with a diverse array of industries, turning Dodge into a kind of jack-of-all-trades. A tenacious investigator, Dodge saved Ares billions of nuyen and was the head of Securitex’s investigation division before he was 30.

For 20 years, Dodge was a loyal company man. He was satisfied with his work, and grateful to not have to live in the sordid conditions he traversed in the course of his investigations. He was happily married to Julie, an art appraiser at Securitex, and father to a son, Nate. The Dodge family lived a life that would have been envied by 99% of the rest of the world.

Until Nate fell ill. Ares doctors were not successful in diagnosing his illness, much less treating it. Every street shaman Dodge visited proved more useless than the last. Finally Dodge found a clinic in Hong Kong that promised they could cure Nate. The cost was exorbitant, but as a high-placed employee at Ares, Dodge knew the company would take care of his family, just as he had always taken care of the company. But Ares refused, telling Dodge that they were placing an embargo on Hong Kong in a dispute with Wuxing Inc. over an electric toothbrush patent. As Nate’s last hope for treatment was blocked, he grew weaker and weaker. He died in Dodge’s arms at just 8 years old.

Dodge started drinking. At first it was just a glass or two of scotch to calm himself in the dark moments when he couldn’t keep the images of his dying son out of his mind. Then it was three or four glasses to sleep deeply enough to avoid the nightmares. Then it was another two in the morning to steel himself to face the day. Julie left him. His work suffered.

Dodge awoke one January morning to find a squad of Ares security forces in his bedroom. After 20 years of loyal service, he was being fired without a second thought. His home, his car, and even the clothes on his back all belonged to Ares. They locked his SIN out of Ares territory in perpetuity, and dumped him at the edge of the compound, naked and alone. Fortunately, his implanted commlink was too much trouble for them rip out, and he managed to get in touch with some local contacts before he froze or was beaten to death.

So he became a shadowrunner. He used what he knew about theft, confidence schemes, and black markets to steal hundreds of thousands of nuyen. But he vowed to never take another corporate gig again. He sought out people who had been wronged by the corps and helped them get back what was theirs (while stealing a healthy chunk for himself, of course).

Having lived in both the shadows and under the corporate spotlight, Dodge is comfortable moving in just about every social circle. Despite the dangers of the shadows, Dodge is no fighter. He knows that if it comes to a fight, he’ll need backup or die messily. Rather, it’s been a dozen high quality fake identities, a silver tongue in five languages, and a healthy dose of luck that have kept him alive.

Despite having stolen more nuyen in 3 years than most shadowrunners see in a lifetime, Dodge doesn’t think of himself as a thief. As far as he’s concerned, he’s the good guy, a kind of 21st century Robin Hood. The mercenary attitudes of the other shadowrunners bother him, and he considers himself their moral superior. But he works with them because he knows that sometimes the bad guys make the best good guys.